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US President Barack Obama has nominated Indian-born Harold D’Souza, a victim of human trafficking, to the key post

In a world torn by war and unrest, the story of a victim-turned-policymaker comes as a shining beacon of hope for the world to be inspired by. In a recent highly admirable move, President Obama nominated Harold D’Souza, an Indian-American victim of human trafficking, to a key position on the US Advisory Council on Human Trafficking.

Harold D’Souza was born in Vadodara, a city in the Indian state of Gujarat. He secured an L.L.B. and an M.Com. degree from the Maharaja Sayajirao University in Vadodara before taking up a job as a Sales Manager in India. As a result of a series of unfortunate events, Harold landed up becoming a victim of labor trafficking and debt bondage. Finding his feet in the United States of America, Harold went on to pull himself out of his debilitating circumstances with the active support of the system for protection of victims of such crimes.

By 2008, Harold had become a Senior Supply Chain Associate with the Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, a position he has held since then. He was a founder member of the National Survivors Network (NSN), which was launched by the Coalition to Abolish Slavery & Trafficking (CAST) in 2011, and he has also been active with End Slavery Cincinnati. His work against slavery and human trafficking was given special recognition by the Greater Cincinnati Human Trafficking Conference 2015, where he was invited to be an advocate to create awareness about the issue.

His nomination to the US Advisory Council on Human Trafficking by the President himself comes as a welcome acknowledgment of his struggle as a victim as well as a socially responsible survivor of human trafficking in the USA. This move is likely to help foster better Indo-American relations with respect to the protection of human rights and ending slavery, both causes India is dedicated towards.

We at USINPAC stand staunchly against evil practices like debt bondage, slavery and human trafficking, at a national as well as international level. We are proud supporters of Harold D’Souza and the global fight against all such brutalization of human rights and dignity. We, along with the entire Indian-American community, wish Harold well and hope that his appointment will prove highly effective in creating strong Indo-American advocacy towards ending slavery and human trafficking.